Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1887-09-06
m ENGLISH THEArER BURNED.
ne Audience Caught by the Flames
and Many Literally Roasted to
Dsash-One Hundred and Thirty
Bodies Taken Out.

ne Audience Caught by the Flames
eod Many Literally Roasted to
Dsath-One Hundred and Thirty
Bodies Taken Out.
During the performance Of 'sThe Romany Rye
In the thsatsr at Exeter England, last evening the
1onoing was discovered TO be on IRE. The audi
eoce became panic-strcken and made q frantic
rush Tor the exits In spite OF the heroic efforts Of
the attaches to recssure them and induce them to
80 out quietly. The occupants OF the pit engaged
n an awful struggle for egress In the narrow
sialea Men and women were deliberately knocked
Gown and trampled upon by those behind them
and hundreds Of persons were almost entirely de-
nuded In
fn TERRIBLE FIaHT FOR LrYk
Tho pit was finally cleared, but q large number
OF the occupants Of that portion Of tie house were
ssriously injured and presented horrible specta-
Gle - they reached the streets. The occupants OF
one very narrow exit from the upper tier involv-
Ing the descent Of a rather long hight Of stairs,
and slaughter ensued The rush for the stairs
was terrinc, and In moment the entire passage
Va, .sy was blocked, those persons who Q, kept their
sneHs erSana ana curses the
imprisoned and the trampled, the wounded and
WAS no relief, and In a moment scores 81 men and
women were either su1ocared TO death or
KILLED BY BEING TRoDDEN uPoN
nre-eScape was at last brought to one OF the
gallery windows, and through this medium the
pressure was relieved and a great many persons
were lowered to the street AS soon as the house
had been cleared or the living, the work OF remov
Ing the dead was begun, and sixty bodies were
taken out by means OF the nre-escape. The
wounded survivors were conveyed to the hospital
and their number cannot at this time be denn1tely
ascertained, but IL Is very large. The total num-
Der OF lives lost Is estimated at 100, but may ex-
coed that figure.
THE FIRE STARTED IN TIE FLIES
during the fourth act OF the play. When the
flames were discovered a drop scene was lowered
To prevent the current OF air from increasing the
blaze. After this was done the actors and stage
hands threw open door to make their es-
cape when the draft caused the flames to burst
through the drop scene and ignite the woodwork
OF the gallery. The flames overlook the hindmost
OF the unfortunate people, who were wedged in
the corridor and stairway, ana
LITERALLY ROASTED THEM ALIVE.
There was no escape for them, the ire being at
their backs, and a compact, immovable mass Of
human beings In front. The nremen reached the
upper windows and took out all the people they
could ind, but most Of them were dead and many
others died soon after they were taken out. The
who were thought to be dead from surYocation, but
at O'Clock this morning nearly one hundred
corpses laid in rows on the floor and these did not
comprise the total number OF the dead, as great
Some Of the dead were simply suf1ocated, and not
at all mutflated or burned The occupants Of the
dress circle escaped without injury, the injured
and dead being confined TO the pit and the upper
circles. The building was destroyed.
ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY BODIES
have been taken out Of the theater thus far. OF
these one hundred were men and boys and thirty
women. score or moro of the injured were
taken 20 the hospital. and large number were
taken TO their homes